Research in Basic Skills: Uncovering Danger Zones for Successful Course Completion

1
Research in Basic Skills Uncovering Danger Zones
for Successful Course Completion

• A Presentation to Cañada College
• 4/25/05

Kurt Hueg, Rose Myers, Frances Gusman, Rob
Johnstone Foothill College
2
Section 1Selected Research Findings on Basic
Skillsat Foothill College
3
1.1 Does our existing curriculum adequately
prepare students for the sequence of classes they
need to take?
4
1.1A Math Sequence Progression, 2000-2001
Entering Cohort

• Starting in Math 200
• Pass 200 72
• Pass 101 37
• Pass 105 20
• Pass CL 11

• Starting in Math 101
• Pass 101 79
• Pass 105 41
• Pass CL 24
• Starting in Math 105
• Pass 105 72
• Pass CL 32

Enrollments tracked through Spring 2004
5
1.1B English Sequence Progression, 2000-2001
Entering Cohort

• Starting in Eng 100
• Pass 100 79
• Pass 110 47
• Pass 1A 36
• Pass 1B 21

• Starting in Eng 110
• Pass 110 86
• Pass 1A 62
• Pass 1B 39
• Starting in Eng 1A
• Pass 1A 90
• Pass 1B 58

Enrollments tracked through Spring 2004
6
1.1C ESL Sequence Progression, 2000-2001
Entering Cohort

• Starting in ESL 150s
• Pass 150s 87
• Pass 160s 55
• Pass 25 32
• Pass 26 26

• Starting in ESL 160s
• Pass 160s 94
• Pass 25 66
• Pass 26 55
• Starting in ESL 26
• Pass 25 94
• Pass 26 61

Enrollments tracked through Spring 2004
7
1.2 Is a student who took a Basic Skills
sequence course last quarter more likely to pass
the next course in the sequence than a student
who waits 3 quarters?
8
1.2A -Time Lag/Non-Success in BS Sequence Courses
Data Covers 2003-2004 School Year
9
1.3 How does course load affect the success of
Basic Skills students?
10
1.3A Non-Success in Basic Skills Courses and
Overall Course Load English
Data Covers 2003-2004 School Year
11
1.3B Non-Success in Basic Skills Courses and
Overall Course Load ESL
Data Covers 2003-2004 School Year
12
1.3C Non-Success in Basic Skills Courses and
Overall Course Load Math
Data Covers 2003-2004 School Year
13
1.4 Does prior course grade relate to future
course success in Basic Skills sequence courses?
14
1.4A - Prior Course Grade and Non-Success Math
Enrollments tracked from 1998M to 2003S
15
1.4B - Prior Course Grade and Non-Success Eng 110
Enrollments tracked from 1998M to 2003S
16
1.4C - Prior Course Grade and Non-Success Eng 1A
Enrollments tracked from 1998M to 2003S
17
1.5 Do students who complete their Basic Skills
courses have a higher rate of success than those
who dont?
18
1.5A English Course Completion and BSS
Non-Success
Enrollments tracked from 1996M to 2002S
19
1.5B English/ESL Placement and BSS Non-Success
Enrollments tracked from 1996M to 2002S
20
1.5C Math Level and Econ 1/Actg 1/Astr 10
Non-Success
Enrollments tracked from 1996M to 2002S
21
Section 2 Research Highlights from Basic Skills
Special Programs At Foothill and Other
California Schools
22
2.1 Foothill Pass the Torch

• Widely successful model pairing at-risk current
  students with academically successful former
  students from same class.
• Success rate improvements of 8 to 15 points in
  English, 7 to 22 points in Math
• Improvements noted are independent of prior
  levels of knowledge PTT members had lower levels
  of academic success upon entry to program.
• After one year, 63 of non-PTT members of similar
  risk status had left campus by the following Fall
  quarter only 11 of PTT members had left
  campus.

23
2.2 Foothill Puente Mfumo

• Both programs combine counseling, English, and
  mentoring for the English 100 through English 1A
  sequence.
• Puente focuses on Hispanic/Latino students, and
  Mfumo on African-American students (although not
  exclusively)
• 2002 Cohort Results
• Puente 44 of students succeeded through Eng 1A
• Mfumo 38
• Control Group 22
• 2003 Cohort Results
• Puente 45 of students succeeded through Eng 1A
• Mfumo 34
• Control Group 22

24
2.3 De Anza Math Performance Success (MPS)
Program

• Program for pre-collegiate Math courses
• Takes traditional 5 days a week, 1 hr/day and
  transforms it into 5 days a week, 2 hrs/day
• More collaborative group work
• Counselor in every session
• Group peer tutoring and study sessions
• Amazing increase in success rates 40 points
  higher in Math 101, 30 points in Math 105, 20
  points in Math 10
• Actively recruits students who have previously
  been unsuccessful in coursework

25
2.4A Mt. San Antonio College Math Academy

• Beginning and Intermediate Algebra have 41-54
  success rates at Mt. Sac only 19-24 get through
  both in two semesters.
• Math Academy combines the two semesters into one
  semester
• Adds in a student peer advisor, a supplemental
  instructor giving individualized instruction, and
  regular visits with counselor
• Also two-hour study skills course every week

26
2.4B Mt. San Antonio College Math Academy

• Another key component the two-hour study skills
  course also focuses on math in real-world
  environments, and on math throughout the rest of
  the college curriculum
• Increased success rates of completing both
  courses in a single semester to 62-77, 2.5 times
  higher than the two-semester rate of 19-24.
• Student quote My hope at the beginning of the
  class was to get my math over with so I could go
  on to the stuff I am good at and enjoy, but now I
  am beginning to see math as empowering. I am now
  beginning to wonder if perhaps I want to take
  more than the minimum math requirements. I am
  beginning to wonder if I want to teach math
  also.

27
2.5A City College of San Francisco (CCSF)
Special Program Services

• Tracked service usage for pre-collegiate basic
  skills programs at individual level
• Nine programs studied were African-American
  Scholastic Programs, DSPS, EOPS, Homeless/At Risk
  Students Program, Latino Service Network,
  Learning Assistance Center (LAC), Math Bridge,
  Puente, Writing Service Program.
• Number of students served ranged from 50 (Math
  Bridge) to over 13,000 (LAC)

28
2.5B City College of San Francisco (CCSF)
Special Program Services

• Found that 84 of students utilized only one
  service.
• Success rates of students utilizing services were
  3 to 24 points higher in Math, and 6 to 33 points
  in English
• For specific minority groups, success rate
  improvements were even higher.
• Noted that demand far outweighed supply 13,000
  students take pre-collegiate courses every
  semester, only 3,000 served by non-LAC services
  in entire academic year.

29
Section 3 Common Threads for Success and Cost
Issues
30
3.1 Common Threads for Success

• Shift traditional delivery model to more
  learner-centered model (Barr Learning College vs.
  Teaching College)
• Utilize cohorts/peer group investment
• Focus on developing study skills early in
  pre-collegiate course sequences
• Additional student time on task is required this
  is an issue for recruiting
• Student confidence in their own abilities is
  increased

31
3.2 Cost Considerations

• Foothills system for tracking students at
  point-of-service is coming in the near future.
• CCSF has calculated cost per student of special
  programs found an average of 1,350 per
  student.
• Yes, expensive, but aside from the fact we should
  be doing this because it works, we need to
  consider downstream benefits of WSCH gained from
  persisting students.
• IRP will attempt to calculate return-on-investment
  (ROI) model similar to those calculated in
  industry for investments.

32
(No Transcript)
33
(No Transcript)
34
(No Transcript)
35
(No Transcript)
36
(No Transcript)
37
(No Transcript)